Still the One

Harry’s Point of View

‘Harry – it’s going off. Again.’ I overhear Libby say just as I start to fall asleep yet again. ‘That is the third time. You have to get up.’ I didn’t open my eyes but I could feel her right against my chest. She was so warm, the last thing I wanted to do was get up. I could just lay here for days and I would be just fine. ‘Harry, did you hear me?’ She questions, taking my silence as I was still sleep.

‘Five more minutes.’ I complain, hitting around in the darkness to silence the blaring alarm. I slap the snooze button once again with no shame. ‘I just need five more minutes and then I’ll get up.’

‘You said that twenty minutes ago.’ Libby reminds me with a hoarse laugh. I really loved her morning voice, so sweet and so pure. ‘C’mon babe, you really don’t want to be late for filming, do you?’

‘I’m exhausted,’ I retort, still I kick my legs around to the side of the bed. 6:27AM. That all too familiar feeling of emptiness washed over me. I was tempted to lay back down, just to feel the warmth of Libby just for a while longer. ‘I told you that we shouldn’t have stayed out all night.’ I taunt, briefly glancing back at the girl in the bed. I couldn’t see her all too well since the room was so dark but I could see her figure.

‘No, no, no. That was you!’ She defends as she sits up in the bed to poke my back, ‘I believe that it was you that said you could manage off of a few hours of sleep. I told you that we could just hold off on the site-seeing until you got a decent break.’ Last night, I took Libby to just about every single tourist location in Dunkirk. I’m pretty sure we were dragging ourselves through the hotel’s lobby after two in the morning. ‘You just had to stop at that twenty-four hour gelato shop.’ Libby stifles out a tired laugh, resting her head on my back.

‘Hey, Stefano’s Gelato is much more than a gelato shop. You have to admit it was worth it.’ I didn’t have to turn around to know that there was a smile on her face. ‘Besides, I’ll be on set all day so I just wanted to spend as much time with you as possible. I hate that you’ll be holed up in a hotel for most of the time here. It’ll probably be weeks before I get a break.’

‘I understand that this isn’t a vacation – you’re here for work. I don’t mind coming in second for a little while. I’m just happy watching from the sidelines. I could probably think of a million worse places to be than a five-star hotel in France.’

‘I love you.’ Was all I could manage to get out as a solid response. She was always so understanding. Libby didn’t have any experience with the “celebrity” life style or the long days but she gets it. It’s refreshing to be with someone who makes it all that much easier. She murmurs an I love you into my ear before I disappear to the other room to take a shower. I glance at my phone, realizing that if I didn’t get out the door in the next fifteen minutes, I’d be late for sure. ‘I won’t be back until a little after four or so, if you’re able to pull yourself away from your riveting photography – how about you meet me on set later so we can get an early dinner somewhere?’

‘That sounds good.’ She says in return, on the verge of falling into one of her deep slumbers. Lucky. I wasn’t sure her eyes were even open at this point.

‘Remember if you need to go anywhere that Tom is right across the hall. He was with me in California and he’s nice, you’ll definitely like him a lot. Please, don’t try to go anywhere by yourself. I know that it’s annoying and you hate being followed by six foot, three hundred pound men but it’s for your safety. Take him with you.’

‘Alright.’ Libby simply mutters, tightening her grip on the thin hotel sheets.

‘You still up?’ I question while stomping around the room in order to get my tennis shoe fully on. ‘I’m leaving.’

‘I love you.’ She sits up and rubs her eyes to get a better look in the dark room, ‘Kiss?’

‘Like you even have to ask,’ I shake my head with amusement but walk to her anyway, ‘I love you.’ I allow my lips to linger before grabbing up my duffle bag and heading towards the door. ‘Bye baby.’

‘Bye bye.’ Libby waves before settling back down into those incredibly soft pillows. I needed to find out where they got theirs so I could fill the house with them. I make a mental reminder to run the idea past Libby as I spot the blacked-out SUV waiting for me. A couple dozen fans patiently waited behind the railing set up by security. It was six in the morning and freezing out here. They spot me and instantly perk up in their places.

‘Hi, everyone!’ I hurry to get in a couple of group photos while Dan, the other security guard hovered behind me. ‘I’m so sorry that I can’t do more but I’m already a bit late.’

‘Good luck today!’ One cheers and they all clap in unison.

‘Thank you, thank you.’

The moment I got to set I was rushed to hair and makeup, then practically shoved into wardrobe. Fionn laughs from his chair as I stumble onto set with my script in my hand. ‘Long night, yeh?’

‘Something like that.’ I answer, focusing on the lines in front of me.

Libby’s Point of View

It didn’t take long after Harry left before I was sound asleep. The next time I open my eyes, it was after eleven in the morning. I can’t remember the last time I slept in. It felt good. Really good. Once I’m up and ready, I decide to go meet my shadow for the next couple of days. A large, really large man opens the door with a serious expression on his face. His features soften as his dark eyes fall on me. ‘You must be Tom.’

‘You must be Libby.’ He replies, extending his massive hand out to me, ‘Pleasure to meet you. How will we be spending the day today?’

‘We can start with something to eat and we’ll just go from there?’ I wonder, repositioning my bag on my shoulder. ‘Are you hungry?’

Tom offers a genuine smile before retrieving a small, black backpack from the floor in his impressively neat hotel room. He talks on the phone to someone, almost in a hushed tone. I’m pretty sure it was the hotel’s security because he mentioned something about a back exit. There’s a sleek, heavily tinted car in the back of the hotel parked by itself. Tom opens my door for me before jogging around to the driver’s side. ‘So, it’s almost lunch time. What’d you have in mind to eat?’

‘Anything really – I’m not picky.’ I shrug, peering out the window at the new location. People filled the streets of Dunkirk, happily walking in and out of the various shops. I sneak a quick picture of one of the tallest buildings while we were waiting for the pedestrians to walk in front of the car. ‘There’s a place.’

‘Alright.’ Tom nods his head while easily sliding into a parking spot that almost seemed too small. ‘Shall we?’

I follow him into the tiny café and look up at the expansive menu. After getting our food, I decide to sit at one of the small tables near the back of the café. Tom takes the table beside me while sipping his coffee. He grabs a nearby newspaper and brings it close to his face. ‘We could sit together, if you want.’ I volunteer gesturing to the empty chair across from me, ‘no pressure.’

‘Thank you.’

‘So, how long have you been in the security business?’

‘Going on twenty-seven years.’

‘I’m betting that you have the best stories about people you’ve worked for. How was it all?’

‘Boring really, nothing that you’d be interested in hearing me ramble about.’ Tom shrugs his huge shoulders with a nervous laugh, ‘Believe me, I’d just put you to sleep with majority of my stories.’

‘I want to hear just one story before the day is over.’

‘I’m not making any promises.’

After we’re finished with our late breakfast slash early lunch, Tom drives down the busy street behind a trail of cars. ‘What a way to see a city, right?’ I speak sarcastically while pointing at the overly-tinted windows. ‘Would it be at all possible to just walk down the street for a few blocks? I just wanted to get an actual feel for things.’

‘I don’t know – it’s a lot of people,’ He speaks uneasily from the front seat, briefly glancing back at me through the rearview mirror, ‘I don’t want a mob or anything like that to form.’

‘A mob? Maybe if I was Harry,’ I stifle out an impressed laugh, ‘Majority of these people won’t even recognize me. Especially since I’m not with Harry right now. They’ll probably just walk right on by without a second glance.’

‘Fine,’ Tom caves in while parallel parking in a matter of seconds, ‘Just a few blocks. If anything seems out of place even in the slightest, we’re heading back to the car.’

‘Just a few blocks.’ I confirm, grabbing my camera to take a couple of pictures of the crowded sidewalk. Tom nervously lingers behind me while I take dozens of pictures of the downtown portion of the city. Harry and I saw most of these places last night but the city looked even more beautiful with the help of the glowing sun light. ‘Isn’t this great?’ I beam excitedly, coming out of another shop.

‘Uh huh.’ Tom nods, his eyes clearly fixated on the mass of people.

Tom and I managed to kill a couple of hours but there were a few more until Harry was finished for the day. I decide to lay low at the hotel before giving Tom a heart attack on his very first day of tailing me. While waiting, I check my phone for the first time all day to see several new notifications. Harry. Max. Christopher. Dad. Max again. Christopher again. ‘Hey, where’s the fire?’ I tease as Christopher answers the phone.

‘When exactly were you going to tell us about Mr. Jacobs?’ Christopher immediately blurts into the line and I nearly drop my phone. ‘Libby?’ He chimes, as I open my mouth to respond but the words never come. ‘Hello?’

‘Wait, wait – Mr. Jacobs? Who told you that?’

‘The entire campus is talking about it.’